An investor puts $1,000 into a fund carrying a 5% front-end load. How much reaches the fund?

1. A front-end load is a sales charge on purchases, typically paid to the broker selling the shares. 2. Five percent of $1,000 is $50, and that $50 comes off the top of the investment. 3. The remaining $950 is what actually buys fund shares. 4. A front-end load therefore reduces the amount invested from the first day. 5. Charging at redemption instead describes a back-end load, where all the money goes to work at purchase. 6. Reading 5% as one half of one percent gives $995 and is a decimal slip. 7. Nothing in a front-end load is charged twice, so $900 has no basis. _Source: US SEC Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, "Mutual Funds and ETFs: A Guide for Investors", section Fee Table: Shareholder Fees for mutual funds_